Method of ascertaining time costs.



METHOD OF ASCERTAINING TIME COSTS.

APPHCATION FILED MAR. 22. I909.

l wggmao Patented Jan.18,1916.

3 SHEETS SHEET 2. 38

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Ufinesaes: Inventor Attorneys J. T. QUIGLEY.

METHOD OF ASCERTAINING TIME COSTS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 22, 1909.

, Patented Jan. 18, 1916'.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

in such terms.

UNITE S AT JOHN T. QUIGLEY, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS TO COSTMETEROOMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. is, rare.

Application filed March 22,1909. Serial No. 484,911.

"To all whom it may camera."

Be it known that 1, JOHN T. QUIGLEY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city and county of San Francisco, State of California, have invented a new and useful Method of Ascertaining Time Costs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to" anovel method of ascertaining the time costs of different operations by converting elapsing time into terms of linear dimension and recording it In and by means of this invention I substitute a mechanical computation ofthe time a person has spent in any employment, or of the cost of such time, at such persons rate of compensation, in place of arithmetical calculation involving figuring or auditing written entries or records; and, in that connection, I provide novel means of indicating a work period of hours and fractional parts of an hour in units of linear measure together with means for reducing or converting such units of linear measure to units of money at the predetermined rate of compensation.

The records of elapsing time and of the.

cost of elapsing time obtained from the use of my system differ from similar records obtained from the use of all previous systems or elapsed time machines. Such-latter records are embodied in'printed'or written entries upon the record-bearing material, whereas in my system the linear; dimension of the record material is the record of the elapsed time or the cost thereof, and any written entries made upon the record material serve only to identify the record or furnish any desired information concerning the work done by the person whose time and the cost thereof is bein kept.

The nature of my said invention and the manner of applying and practising the same will be understood from the following description thereof in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a part of the linear money scale employed in this system and in which the divisions represent units of money according to a predetermined linear unit, as here, for example,'six inches represent one dollar. Fig. '2 illustrates a piece of tape or arelatively narrow strip of paper, cardboard, or other suitable material of indefinite length, with figures printed or otherwise marked on its face at intervals apart denoting units of time, and so spaced with reference to the divisions of the linear money scale that the units of time indicated on the tape have a fixed money value according to the said money scale. Fig. 3 represents a blank tape, having a-character of surface suitable for receiving written entries and of aform convenient for measuring by the linear scale. Fig. 4; represents a record sheet having upon it the money scale and spalces, raduated conformably to the money sca e, pieces of tape whereby the money scale and the graduated spaces serve to convert the units of linear measure of the tape into their. equivalents of money, and the sheet thus becomes a permanent record of the labor cost of a given piece of work on which several different operatives may have been employed. Fig. 5 illustrates a part of the linear time scale employed in this system and in which the divisions represent units of time according to a predetermined linear resent one hour. Fig. Grepresents in elevaor pasting or otherwise attaching tion a clock driven device which I provide I i to register passing time or the money Value I of passing time automatically and synor carrier and the device connected therewith for-,controlling the tape, whereby a v Fig. 9 is a transverse, vertical section taken diametrically through the tape carrier. Fig. 10 is a vertical sectionalview of the device illustrated in Fig. 6, the section being taken on the line w w. Fig. 11 is a perspective view in detail of the device for marking and perforating a line on the record tape at the opening in the top of the case under which the tape passes.

This system may/be used and practised unit, as here for example, three inches repchronously as increasing space. Fig. 7 is'a w front elevation of the tape moving wheel either with or without, but preferablywith, the mechanism illustratedin Figs. 6 to 11 inclusive.

1n .proceeding Without the use of this clock driven mechanism, I provide a printed time scale for each rate of Wages paid for time, the money value of which is to be recorded. Such a scale is illustrated by b, Fig. 2), and is there shown divided into units of time conforming to the money scale a, and adapted for use in connection with a wage rate of fifty cents per hour. When this time scale I) is supplied to the money scale a, Fig. 1, it will be seen that the space covered by the'figures and lines from seven oclock to eight o'clock, or one hour, on the scale I), is fifty cents, as indicated by the money scale a. In varying this scale 6 to conform to other rates of wages, T decrease or increase the spaces devoted to the units of one hour until the length of the hour space, when measured by the money scale a, shall equal the required money value of such period according to the ruling rate of wages. This scale 6 ispreferably printed upon the surface of a tape or strip of paper, or some other suitable material, and each workman is given such a strip, the scale on which conforms with the rate of wages he receives. Upon commencing a job, he enters the job number thereof on the tape at the printed time corresponding to the then time of day and upon completing the job he indicates the time of completion by a mark on the tape at the printed time corresponding to the then time of day. The foregoing operation. is illustrated in Fig. 2 where the job number 163% is entered on the tape 6 at seven oclock and the completion of the job is indicated by a mark at 8 24-5 together with the entry at that point of anotherjob number, 1685. Such piece or section of tape, when measured by the money scale a, is shown, without'further written entry of figures, to have a money value of 87?; cents.

, The scale 6 is provided in convenient form for use in connection with separate pieces or strips of blank paper or recordbearing material 0, illustrated in Fig. 3, whereby the entries are made on blank paper at the proper distances apart by applying the printed scale Z) thereto when making the entries. In this way blank tape is made available and one time-scale is continuously used by the operative to whose rate of wages it conforms. An illustration of this process may be had by applying the scale Z) to the tape 0, shown in Fig. 3, where the job number 1634: and a line, indicating the completion of this job. are shown as hav ing been entered on the blank tape 0 by applying thereto, when making the entries, the scale F).

In practice, it have found the most con venient manner of usingthe scale 95 ccn- 11,168,6ttt

nection with the tape 0 is to aflix such scale 0 to a holder for a pad of strips or tapes 0, whereby the surface of the strip is held in proximity to the scale. I have shown one form of such holder in my application for Letters Patent filed December 29, 1908, Serial Number 469,751. All records made by means of such scale I), whether by use of tapes with such scale printed thereon or by blank tapes, are converted into their money values by being applied to the money scale a, or affixed to the job record cost sheet d. 1

In place of the time scale 32 for determining the proper points on the record tape for making entries of the beginning and ending of jobs, the clock driven mechanism, above referred to, is preferably used, and one is supplied to each operative, the cost of whose time it is desired to record.

I will now describe the same in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

1 represents a suitable light, metallic casing divided by the partition 2 into two chambers or compartments 3 and l, The front and rear walls of the casing 1 are hinged at one end to the respective end walls of the casing to form doors which may be held closed by latches or locks. By opening these doors access is had to chambers 3 and i respectively.

The chamber 3 contains the tape feeding mechanism and the chamber l contains the motor 5 employed in driving such mechanism. The motor 5 is preferably a clock work constructed to run for several days with one winding thereof and sufficiently powerful to operate the tape feeding mechanism.

The tape feeding mechanism is connected with the clock work 5 through the arbor 6 extending through the partition 2 and having on its end a pinion 7 which engages the gear 80f the clock work 5. The clock work being of a standard construction further description thereof is thought unnecessary. The arbor 6. which is revolved once an hour, has at its other end the gear wheel 9 which drives the tape carrier 12 through the gears 10 and 11 which gear 11 is mounted on shaft 13. of the carrier wheel and secured thereto by the thumb screw 1-1. The intermediate gear 10, meshing with gears 9 and 11, is mounted on the movable arm 15. whose center of movement is coincident with the shaft 13. The outer end of the arm 15 extends through a slot in the end wall of the casing 1 and by depressing this end of the arm 15, the gear 10 is thrown out of mesh with the gear 9. The arm is held in its depressed position by the latch 16, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 8.

Tn the face of the tape carrier -l2 are two c'rcumferential grooves Ill', and in the nearing face between these grooves are adjustably secured, by screws 18, impaling points 19 extending radially from the face of the carrier 12 and so spaced as to insure at all times the impalement of the tape 20 on one or more of such points as it is being fed by the carrier. The tape-20 is supplied from a spool 21 whose axle is carried by the partition 2 and the spring arm 22 hinged to its supporting bracket, 23 attached to the top of the casing 1. From the spool 21 the tape 20 is laid over the roller 22 across the platen 23, which is located under the aperture 24, in the top of the casing 1, then over the roller 25 and around the carrier 12 from which it is stripped by the end of the plate 39, which plate also acts as a guide to cause the tape to fall in folds on the floor of the chamber 3. After passing under the aperture 24, the tape 201s guided in its path by the rollers 2.7, 28 and 29 and the curved plate or guide 31. The rollers 27, 28 and 29 each have a circumferential groove to permit the impaling points 19 to pass. The roller 27 is set in sufficiently close relation to the face of the carrier 12 to slightly impale the tape upon the points 19. The rollers 28 and 29 are set in closer relation to the face of the carrier 12 and press the tape down on the points 19 and against the face of the carrier, thereby insuring a positive feed of the tape at the speed at which the face of the carrier 12 moves. The plate or guard 30 prevents the tape being moved forward under the aperture 24 independent of the movement of the carrier by an operative desiring to interfere with the feed of the tape at the speed of the carrier. The-carrier 12, the rollers 22, 25, 27, 28, 29, the guards 30 and 31 and the platen 23 are all inclosed in the casing 32 firmly attached by screws to one end of the casing 1 and to the partition 2. The sides- 33 of the casing 32' provide bearings for the axles of the carrier and rollers and supports for the platen and guides.

On the top of the casing 1 and in working relation with theaperture 24 is located. the perforator 34 consisting of the spring 35 attached at one end to the top of the casing 1 and having-afiixed to its other end the male die 36. The female die 37 is formed in The speed at which the tape is moved by u the carrier 12 is madeconformable to the money scale a and controlled and varied according to the wage rate per unit of time of the operative using the machine. Such chine.

speed is controlled in the following manner: The c1rcumference.of the carrier 12 is equal to the linear unit' representing one dollar in the money scale adopted. The gear 11 has two teeth for each hour of the working week. The gear 9 has two teeth for each dollar of the weekly wage rate it is desired to record. It will be seen, therefore, that a change of one tooth on the gear 11 will effect a. change of half an hour in the length of the working week, and l a change of one tooth on the gear 9 will effect a change of fifty cents in the weekly wage rate.

The manner of operating the m'achlne is as follows: If the operative using the machine receives $24 for a 48 hour week, the gear 11 will have 96 teeth and a gear 9 will have 48 teeth. Upon commencing the mornmgs work, the operative will release the arm 15 held depressed by the latch 16, and thereby bring the gear 10 into mesh with gear 9, thusstarting the movement of the carrier 12. He will then strike the knob 38 to perforate the tape, after which he will write upon the tape exposed through the aperture 24 the number of the job he is worklng on, for example, job number 1634. Upon completing this job, he will again perforate the tape and write the number of the next job on the exposed surface of the tape, for example, job number 1635. If the ob (1634) consumed one hour and forty five minutes, the gear 9 would in that time have made one and three fourths revolutions and the carrier 12seven-eighths of one revolution, thereby carrying past the perforating line, tape equal to seven-eighths of the carrielrs circumference, or five and onefourth inches, which according to the money scale a, has a value of eighty-seven and onehalf cents. 4

At the beginning of the noon hour and at the end-of the day the tape is again perforated and the arm 15 depressed and held by the latch 16 'tostop the feed of the tape.

The tape fed through the machine and deposited on the floor of chamber 3 is separated from the unused tape at the last line of perforation and removed from the ma- It is ,then separated at its. various lines of perforation dividing it into records of different -jobs, and then such pieces of tape with the identifying job numbers thereon formingsuch records, are attached respectively to the correspondingly numbered job. scale sheets. Each of said job scale sheets forms a permanent record of the-costof all time devoted to a job by the various operatives through whose hands the job has passed.

As the speed at which the tape is fed through the machine varies according to the wage rate of the operative using the machine-and is also controlled by the unit of linear measure representing .one dollar in the money scale adopted, it is apparent that the value, per unit of linear measure, of all tape collected from the machines used by the various operatives as above described, is the same.

It is obvious that this machine may be used simply for the purpose of recording elapsed time in terms of linear measure. When so used, the speed at which the tape is moved, is made the same in the various machines used by any number of operatives,-

for example, three inches of tape in each machine being moved past the perforating line every hour. Likewise, when so used, the operative would perforate the tape and enter the job number thereon in the same manner, and tape, forming the record of the elapsed time devoted to the various jobs, would then be collected, separated and attached to the proper job sheets as described. However, in connection with the machines so used, the time scales e illustrated in Fig. 5, replace the money scales on the job sheets. These time scales, as shown, are graduated in units of hours and minutes conformable to the adopted linear unit of three inches representing one hour. By means of these job sheets with such time scales thereon, the elapsed time devoted to a job by any number of operatives through whose hands the job has passed, can readily be recorded in permanent form by attaching to the proper job sheet all the pieces of tape taken from the various machines used by such operatives and bearing the number of such job.

I claim- 1. The method of producing comparable records of time costs of different operations under difi'erent rates which consists in placing a plurality of continuous recording strips in cooperative relation each to a length determining element, causing a progressive advancing movement between the strips and their respective length-determining elements concurrently with the performing of the respective operations, the rate in each case being proportioned both to elapsing time and the characteristic rate of time cost for the particular operation being performed, applying the length-determining element to the strip to mark the beginning and the end of the operation, and applying each marked off strip to a common, linear, time-cost, multiple rate scale and ascertaining therefrom the time cost represented by each portion of any given strip irrespective of the time cost rate associated therewith.

2. The method of producing comparable records of time costs of diflerent operations under different rates which consists in placing a plurality of continuous recording strips in cooperative relation each to a lengthdetermining element, causing a progressive advancing movement between the strips and their respective length-determining elements mes es concurrently with the performing of the respectiveoperations, each portion of a strip after passing its length-determining element being withdrawn from any further operative association therewith, the rate in each case being proportioned both to elapsing time and the characteristic rate of time cost for the particular operation being performed, applying the length-determining element to the strip to mark the beginning and the end of the. operation, and applying each marked ofi' strip to a common, linear, time-cost, multiple rate scale and ascertaining therefrom the time cost represented by each portion of any given strip irrespective of ,the time cost rate associated therewith.

3. The method of recording the time cost of different operations at different rates which consists in producing concurrently with the performance of the respective operations successive record elements, varying said elements by some measurable, physical property irrespective of arbitrary or predetermined proportions, but proportional both to elapsed time and the time cost rate associated with that particular operation and then measuring the said physical property of each element by a common standard of value and ascertaining therefrom the time cost represented thereby irrespective of the different time cost rates associated with said operations.

4. The method of ascertaining the time costs of aplurality of operations under different rates which consists in first producing in each case, concurrently with the performance of the operation, a record of the cost, the length of which record is proportional both to the time elapsing during said operation and to the particular rate or time cost for that operation and represents the money value of the time interval and then applying saio records to a common multiple rate scale of money values to graphically disclose the money values represented by said records.

5. The method of ascertaining the time costs of a plurality of operations under different rates which consists in first producing in each case a record of the cost, the length of which is automatically determined and is proportional both to the time elapsing during said operation and to the particular rate of time cost for that operation, and represents the money value of the time interval and then applying said records to a common multiple rate scale of money values to graphically disclose the money values represented by said records.

' 6. The method of ascertaining the time costs of different operations under different rates which consists in each case in marking a record at the beginning and again at the end of the time interval elapsing during the operation, progressively moving the record during the said operation with relation to the marking position at a rate which varies with the time cost rate for that particular operation and also with the elapsing time and producing thereby a record the length of which represents the money value of the time interval, and then applying said records to a common multiple rate scale of money values to graphically disclose the money values represented by said records.

7. The method of ascertaining time costs of dilferent operations under dilferent rates which consists in first producing in each case a record the length of which ,is proportional both to the time elapsing during said operation and to the particular rate of time costvfor that operation and is irrespective of any predetermined or arbitrary subdivisions, and then applying said records to a common multiple rate scale of money values to graphically disclose the money values represented bv said records.

8. The method of ascertaining the time cost of a given operation which consists in first producing concurrently with the performance of the operation a record the length of which varies both with the time elapsing during said operation and with the particular rate of time cost for that operation and represents the money value of the time interval and then applying the said record to a common multiple rate scale of money values to graphically disclose the money value of the record. I

9. The method of ascertaining the't'im'e cost of a given operation which consists in first producing a record the length of which is automatically determined and represents the money value of a time interval not apparent upon its face and then applying the said record to a common multiple rate scale of money values to graphically disclose the money value of the record.

10. The method of ascer-taining the time costs of different operations which consists in first producing a plurality of records the length of each of which is automaticallydetermined and represents the money value of a time interval not apparent upon the record faces and then aflixing said records to a common scale of money values to graphically disclose by their aggregate lengthsthe aggregate money values of said records.

11. The method of producing comparable records of the time cost of a plurality of operations under diflerent rates which consists in each case in dimensioning concurrently with the performance of the operation a record substance at a rate proportional both to the time elapsing during said operation and the characteristic rate of time cost and thereby producing said record substance in the form of identified parts the dimensions of each of which represent the money value of a time interval and then applying said parts to a common multiple rate scale of money values to disclose the money values thereof.

JOHN T. QUIGLEY. Witnesses:

WM. K. WHITE, H. G. PROST. 

